Web of Love
by MasterMind13
Summary: A trip to the Underworld Forest leads to unexpected feelings. A GrimxVelma oneshot.


**This is an idea I've had for months. I finally gathered enough courage to coalesce it into something readable. Besides, I've always wanted to write something for this movie. It's one of my favorites. ^_^**

 **Oh, and the title is a play on words. You know? Tails? _Tales_? You get the idea. **

* * *

"Okay, time for bed, Oceania," said Aquamarine.

"Aww," groaned Oceania, "do I have to?"

"Yes, honey, it's a school night."

Oceania jumped off the bed, picking up her teddy bear. She was an adorable child: she had wavy blonde hair falling to her shoulders and turquoise eyes. Aquamarine smiled at her daughter as she got ready to tuck her in.

"Will you tell me a story?" Oceania asked while her mother was tucking her in.

"What would you like to hear?" Aquamarine asked.

"Tell me the story of how you and Daddy met."

Aquamarine couldn't deny her that, she'd been waiting for the moment her daughter would ask her that. It was a wonderful story to tell, and she would not be disappointed. It was the least she could do.

"You got it." Aquamarine pulled up her daughter's favorite chair next to the bed. Sitting down, she grabbed her bearings and began the story. "It all started with your favorite aunties, Claire and Hailey. They found me in their club's swimming pool. It didn't start out well, what with me being a mermaid and all." Aquamarine giggled at the fond memory. "Anyways, after we introduced ourselves, we agreed to meet in the morning and talk. Wouldn't you believe it, the handyman came and he had this pool cleaning machine and I got out before he could suck me in.

"So, Claire and Hailey helped me win Daddy's heart. You see, your grandpa didn't believe in love. He believed that we only marry the ones that are chosen for us."

"That's silly," said Oceania. "How can he not believe in love?"

"I know, you're right," said Aquamarine, agreeing with her daughter's remark. "I had to prove to your grandpa that love exists, or else I'd be married off to some arrogant merman." She leaned in closer and continued. "Your aunties, of course, both had a crush Daddy, but they gave him up, for me. They helped me adjust to human culture, lent me spare clothes, showed me how to look alluring to your Daddy." Aquamarine giggled at the memories of all those magazines she read. "They gave me so many magazines to read and memorize. I nearly had a head rush reading all those articles. But there was something else. Cecelia Banks. She had her eyes set on Daddy, but the three of us would not be deterred.

"We did everything. Following him to his favorite spots, sending out hints of flirting. Cecelia wasn't backing down either, especially with winning Daddy's heart. But, there was a drawback. You see, at night, my tail grew back and I needed to sleep somewhere with water."

"Where did you sleep, Mommy?" Oceania asked curiously.

"Well, I knew I couldn't go to the ocean because then your grandpa would take me back home," replied Aquamarine. "So, Claire and Hailey took me to the water tower. I could sleep there without worrying about my father taking me home.

"On the second day, the three of us went shopping in Tampa. We bought all sorts of things: clothes, jewelry, shoes. When we came back home, I realized I'd forgotten earrings. Your aunties thought I meant the type of earrings they wear, but I meant my kind of earrings: starfish. Starfish whisper compliments into your ear when you stick them on."

"How did you get the starfishes?" Oceania inquired, clutching her teddy bear. "Didn't grandpa try to take you back?"

"No, honey," said Aquamarine, cupping her daughter's cheek. "I didn't go. Your Aunty Hailey went out to get them for me. I got her a ride on a dolphin."

"How did the dolphins get there?"

"I whistled to them." Aquamarine replied. "All mermaids can do it."

"Why didn't Aunty Claire go with her?" Oceania asked.

"Well, you see, Claire lost her parents when she was young. And she was scared of getting into the water."

"That's so sad."

"I know, honey," said Aquamarine. "Back to the story. After I got my starfish we went out and we ran into Cecelia again. She told me that Raymond asked her out to The Last Splash, that she told him that I had a boyfriend. And I just couldn't stand it. I drank a mouthful of water and spit it at her like a sprinkler."

Oceania laughed. "Ew, Mommy!"

Aquamarine laughed along with her daughter. By the time she stopped laughing her face got serious. "Then, I ran off. I thought that I had lost him, I went to the beach, ready to go home, when Hailey caught up to me and we talked. She told me about how her father left her and her mother. She told me that the reason people want love so badly is because it's the closest thing to magic she—and everyone—has in the human world."

Oceania's eyes widened in wonder.

"So," said Aquamarine, "I gave it another shot. The three of us went back to the club for Last Splash. I met up with Daddy. I didn't know how to dance, I looked like I was being electrocuted by jellyfish. But Daddy taught me how to dance, and oh, it was magical. My toe-scales turned pink when I took a peek." She giggled as she looked down at her toenails and fingernails. They were turning yellow. Happiness. Oceania leaned forward and took a gander. She mouthed out the word 'wow.'

"What happened next, Mommy?" Oceania cheeped as she laid back in her bed. She clutched her teddy bear in anticipation. Aquamarine sat back and continued her story.

"Well, after the dance, I needed to head back to the water tower," said Aquamarine. "Daddy didn't want me to go, but I had no choice. But it wasn't a complete loss. I got to see the fireworks from the safety of the water tower. If only I had known that Cecelia had followed me to the water tower. She flashed her flashlight, I panicked, she saw my mermaid tail, and I hid in the water. She locked the door to keep me from escaping." Aquamarine bit her lip in resolve. Then she continued. "But in the morning, guess what happened? Remember the handyman I mentioned earlier? The one with the pool cleaning machine? Well, he brought his own ladder, unlocked the door and got me out. He took me back to his home." She broke into laughter. "You should've seen Cecelia's face when the handyman and I watched her on the news. She was so embarrassed."

"She must've felt like a dummy." Oceania hooted, laughing. Both mother and daughter laughed at the silly joke.

Then Aquamarine continued the story. "Since he helped me, I told him he gets a wish. His wish was that the lady at the club would fall in love with him. And so I granted it. He was just so happy. After that, I went to the pier, which is where Daddy found me. We talked, tried to convince me to stay longer. I couldn't get him to stay why I needed to rush things. And then, Cecelia came, and she was furious. She pushed me off the pier and I fell in and my tail appeared. She and Daddy were shocked, Cecelia more than him. And because I fell in the ocean my father summoned a storm to take me back home. I tried to swim away but the waves were so mush stronger than me. I held on to the buoy—the same one where Hailey got me the starfish. I grabbed on, and before I knew it Hailey—and Claire—swam all this way to save me. I couldn't believe it: Claire faced her fears to rescue me. I was touched.

"We held on to the buoy. The waves rocketed, threatening to whisk me away. And as I despaired, Claire and Hailey told me that Raymond loves me. That he truly loves me. And they also told me that they went after me because they love me. I cried a tear and it fell in the water. And just like that, the storm stopped; the skies cleared, the waves calmed down. My father now knew that love exists. Remember when I said mermaids grant wished to those who help them? Well, I asked them what they wanted. Claire and Hailey wanted me to stay with them forever. But as touching as that was I needed to get back to my family. But I promised to visit them, even swimming all the way to Australia to see Hailey. I advised them to save their wishes. They swam back to the shore, and then Daddy came on his surfboard. I sat on his board, he was surprised to see me in...that state.

"I promised him I'd try to come back once in a while. He was willing to live with that. I went back home to talk things over with my father. We came to an agreement: I could go to the shore three days a week, and I could visit Hailey in Australia once every three months. That was fair with me. So, I drifted ashore to visit Raymond and Claire, and swam every three months to Australia, though sometimes I would speak to her on the computer at Claire's house—"

"Mommy, what happened to Cecelia?" Ocean interrupted. She didn't mean to disrupt the story, but she was eager to know what became of Cecelia.

"Oh right," said Aquamarine, "I almost forgot. See, three weeks passed after I smoothed things over with my dad, and I washed ashore to meet Raymond. He filled me in what was going on, and he told me that Cecelia begged her father to send her to boarding school. She lost Raymond to me, and she couldn't do anything to Claire now that daddy would never let her near her again. She lost everything. The best thing for her to do was it get away from it all. So, when Claire started school, Cecelia wasn't there to hassle her."

"Yay! Goodbye Cecelia!" Oceania chirped.

Aquamarine chuckled. "So then," she continued, "by the time Hailey turned eighteen she moved back here to Florida. In the eyes of the law, she was an adult and could do what she wanted. And the first thing she did was move back here. She applied to college and the three of them were together. Everybody but me. I really wanted to go with them, but I had to live by my father's promise. So I had to wait for them to finish college, so I could be with them again." She sighed at the fond memories.

"Then what, Mommy, then what?" Oceania pressed, kicking her legs.

"Well, it had been four years since we met." Aquamarine said. "Daddy and I had been dating for a while now, and out of the blue, Ray proposed to me. 'Course, he had to speak to my father, so he could give him his blessing. It went overall okay. We had our wedding on the beach, and we went to Fiji for our honeymoon. Your daddy was blown away, he had never seen Fiji before, so it was perfect." She took a breath. "Several weeks after our honeymoon, I'd gotten sick a lot. I went to the doctor and found out I was pregnant. And what was more shocking: I couldn't turn into a mermaid anymore. When I took a step in the water at the beach, nothing happened. I used a conch shell to talk to my father, and I told him I was pregnant. He said that I won't be able to turn into a mermaid until I had the baby.

"I wasn't completely disappointed. I've always wanted to have a child. And Raymond was so excited about being a daddy. Claire and Hailey took me shopping for baby clothes, and I took those Lamaze classes. And Ray and I would just sit close together and watch the sunset and wait, and wait. And then, you were born, my little Oceania." Aquamarine then ticked her daughter's belly. Aquamarine continued her story as soon as they both stopped laughing. "But, because I was a mermaid, I wasn't sure if you were going to be born human or a mermaid, I gave birth at home. Luckily Claire and Hailey read up on delivering a baby and they helped, and Daddy was just fretting and holding my hand the whole time."

Suddenly footfalls echoed. Both mother and daughter turned to see he visitor. Raymond walked in.

"Aw, hey, did you start stories without me?" he said in a playfully accusing tone.

"Yes, we did," replied Aquamarine. Raymond walked over to his wife and kissed her. "How was your night with the guys?"

"Great." Raymond replied. He playfully tickled his daughter's foot. "How's my little guppy?"

"Good." answered Oceania. "Daddy can we go swimming tomorrow after school?"

"Sure we can, kiddo." said Raymond. He leaned in closer and kissed her on the forehead. "But right now you need to go sleep. School's tomorrow."

Oceania yawned and she held her teddy bear close. Aquamarine pushed the chair back in her corner where it usually rested. As soon as she walked out the door, Raymond turned off the lights. From there the two made their way to their bedroom.

"So you sure she won't turn into a mermaid?" Raymond asked.

"Yes," said Aquamarine, "I talked to my father, he says that she won't turn into a mermaid until she reaches adulthood. And besides, we've taken her swimming before; she's never turned into a mermaid then."

"I just want to be sure."

Raymond opened the door their bedroom.

"Don't forget; Claire and Hailey are coming over for game night tomorrow." said Aquamarine.

"I wouldn't miss it." said Raymond. "Congratulations on Claire getting a boyfriend. Same for Hailey."

"Agreed."

* * *

 **So, a few things to fill in. Oceania is Aqua and Ray's daughter. She's half mermaid and half human. This is how it goes: in my headcanon, she doesn't have colored streaks in her hair like her mother. And about her turning into a mermaid. I tried to do the math. Aqua looked like she was the same age as Claire and Hailey, so given that, I would say she got pregnant with Oceania at twenty...twenty-one? So Oceania will be able to turn into a mermaid when she's twenty-one. She'll be able to do the things her mother does.**

 **Also, about Oceania referring to Hailey and Claire as her aunties. They babysit her when her parents go out, and tell her stories. They're an impact on her and sees them as role models.**

 **P.S. The name Oceania means "relating to the ocean." Rather fitting. ^_^ I wanted to use another one, but 'Moana' was already taken.**


End file.
